Nguyen Kim seen replacing The Gioi Di Dong at Big C

According to an August financial report of Mobile World Group (MWG), the operator of the The Gioi Di Dong mobile phone store chain, MWG has had to close 22 stores at Big C supermarkets following the chain’s recent acquisition by a Thai firm.

The Gioi Di Dong’s sales at Big C outlets were modest compared to more than 1,000 stores countrywide, so the withdrawal of its stores did not cause any significant impact on revenue growth of MWG in August, the listed enterprise told its shareholders.

Speaking to the press, MWG general director Tran Kinh Doanh said it was just a normal business agreement between the two parties.

In late April, France’s Casino Group announced it had sold its Vietnam unit to Thai conglomerate Central Group for one billion euros (US$1.14 billion). In January 2015, Power Buy, a unit of Central Group’s Central Retail Corporation, also acquired a 49% at Nguyen Kim.

Therefore, industry insiders said it is not a surprise that Big C Vietnam has to adjust its business strategy and make room inside its supermarkets for Nguyen Kim.

However, some mobile retailers are still operating normally at Big C supermarkets. Recently, a staff at Vien Thong A said that his store was still open at Big C Go Vap in HCMC.

Shop-in-shop, or store-within-a-store, is an agreement in which a retailer rents part of retail space to run an independent store. MWG opened its first The Gioi Di Dong store at the Big C supermarket chain in the southern province of Dong Nai in March last year.

According to MWG’s media relations department, the withdrawal is totally voluntary.